Aging, which is a physiological process, is a period that reduces or limits the activity level and functionality of individuals, making them socially, physically and emotionally dependent to different degrees. With increasing age, changes may occur in physiological, psychological, cognitive and social areas, while the individual's cognitive and functional capacity decreases, an increase in the incidence of chronic diseases is observed. In light of today's scientific, medical, technological and economic developments, the population of both our country and the world is increasing. The 'geriatric syndrome concept' that we encounter due to the increasing elderly population has brought with it a series of sub-concepts. The most important of these concepts is the concept of sarcopenia, which has been the subject of many studies in recent years. Sarcopenia is defined as a progressive and widespread loss of muscle mass, function and strength. The EWGSOP, known as the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in the Elderly, defined sarcopenia in 2010 as a syndrome characterized by progressive and widespread loss of skeletal muscle mass and function, associated with risks such as physical disability, poor quality of life and death.
Sarcopenia, which is the most common among geriatric syndromes, significantly affects the physical, social and psychological life of the individual, while visibly restricting daily life activities. The presence of sarcopenia increases the risk and duration of hospitalization due to the loss of strength, falls and fragility it brings, and significantly increases the cost of care. Determining the parameters affected by sarcopenia in the geriatric population is essential for the establishment of preventive treatment algorithms and providing clinicians with a comprehensive perspective on sarcopenia.
The first factor that the presence of sarcopenia can affect may be proprioception. It is thought that the impairments in proprioception may be due to a decrease in the dynamic response of muscle spindles and axonal atrophy leading to impaired processing of sensory information. The cervical region is especially critical in terms of proprioception. The suboccipital muscles in the cervical region contain a large number of mechanoreceptors for proprioception, and this region is defined as the main source of proprioceptive information. However, there is no study in the literature investigating the relationship between sarcopenia and cervical proprioception or the effect of sarcopenia on cervical proprioception.
Another issue that needs to be addressed in the presence of sarcopenia is kinesiophobia. In a study conducted in 2024, the relationship between sarcopenia risk and kinesiophobia in geriatric individuals was evaluated and it was observed that sarcopenia risk increased the risk of kinesiophobia.
Finally, another issue that we want to evaluate in the presence of sarcopenia is the pressure pain threshold. No study investigating the relationship between sarcopenia and pressure pain threshold was found in the literature.
In light of the above information, the aim of the current study is to reveal the effect of sarcopenia on cervical proprioception, kinesiophobia and pressure pain threshold in geriatric individuals living in a nursing home.
Purpose: To reveal the effect of sarcopenia on cervical proprioception, kinesiophobia and pressure pain threshold in geriatric individuals living in a nursing home.
The current study was planned as a prospective, controlled study at the Private Nevia Oran Nursing Home and Elderly Care Center.
Universe and sample of the study: The study will be conducted with the participation of individuals living in the Private Nevia Oran Nursing Home and Elderly Care Center located in the city center of Ankara.
Data collection: Data will be collected by the researcher using a face-to-face interview technique .
To determine the sarcopenia classification, hand grip strength will be measured with the Jamar hand dynamometer, and physical performance will be evaluated with the the 4 m walking test . Bioimpedance Analysis (BIA) and anthropometric measurement methods will be used to measure muscle mass. Based on the results obtained, individuals will be divided into 2 groups as those with sarcopenia and those without sarcopenia.
Those with no decrease in muscle mass, grip strength and muscle performance will form the asymptomatic control group, while those with decreased muscle mass, grip strength and/or performance will be included in the sarcopenic group (experimental group).
Joint position error test will be used to assess cervical proprioception. An algometer will be used to assess the pressure pain threshold. The kinesiophobia causes scale and pain catastrophizing scale will be used to assess fear of movement and pain catastrophizing.
